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Friday, February 09, 2018

a very purple quilt-completed

Welcome to finish it up Friday! I'm thrilled that the very purple quilt is complete!

As you may have read, I started this quilt on Monday. I put the last stitches in the binding, added a hand-written label and washed & dried it on Thursday afternoon. I plan to pop in into the mail later today! Time was of the essence, as this is a comfort quilt for a friend's sister, who is currently undergoing cancer treatments. A lot of stitches and prayers went into this quilt.

Once again, I'm amazed at what a little (or a lot) of focus can do! Don't worry....I still fed my family, did laundry, walked my dogs, tended a sick child and kept things going around the house. Oh, and I slept, too. :)

All of the fabric (except the backing) came from my stash. That felt amazing and I was happy to actually USE it, you know?

The backing is a chambray/cross weave fabric by Andover. I found it on clearance at my local quilt shop. (Hurray!) It's super soft and very calm compared to the front. Hahaha! In order to keep the back interesting, I added a strip of patchwork. I'm so glad I did! It was nice to use up some scraps on the back. If I were to use this quilt, I would use the back side up! It's certainly not the first time I've liked the back of the quilt better than the front.

For the binding I used a purple colored fabric that reminds me of grape jelly, but it is actually a Kona called Hibiscus. :) I like the way it frames the quilt.

A few weeks ago, I purchased some labels from the Dutch Label Company. I can't tell you how official I feel now! I really like them. I put off ordering labels for YEARS because I didn't want to make a decision. Now I'm wondering why on earth I waited so long. Silly, but true!

I sewed the label to the back (strategically placed) and then I quilted it. I figured that it would be better to have a little bit of quilting over the label, rather than to have the label sewn through all the layers of the quilt and have an awkward rectangle of straight stitching showing on the front. (I hope that makes sense...it's hard to explain.) I also added a hand written label with the recipient's name, my name, the date and a get well sentiment on it. Label overkill? I hope not!

I free motion quilted it on my Juki with a simple stipple using a light lavender thread. (50 weight Aurifil color 2560)

I didn't keep an exact tally of the hours that I worked on this quilt, but I estimated it was around 18 hours. (That doesn't include the time it took for shopping for the backing.) I think that's pretty reasonable, especially since that time includes hand binding.

It measures approximately 63" x 72".

While I'm still not a huge fan of the color purple, I enjoyed making this quilt and I think that it came together pretty well. I'm praying it brings a lot of warmth, comfort and love.

Now, it's your turn! Please link up your finishes for the week. Thank you for joining me for finish it up Friday. Have a wonderful weekend. xo

37 comments:

Hi Amanda,What a lovely gesture, and I am 100% sure that your friend's sister will feel all the love and prayers as she enjoys this quilt. I am not a huge fan of purple either, but I do love your quilt. Isn't amazing that while purple isn't your go-to color you still had plenty of it in your stash to complete this lovely quilt? And binding too! Your label looks so professional and it is a nice addition to the back - I need to order some myself some year. ~smile~ Roseanne

Lovely finish. You have me rummaging through my purple bin - It's my favorite color! Label looks great too. What a nice Monday-Friday project and it will bring love and peace to the recipient. I don't have a finish for this Friday :-( but I hope to link up next week.

WHAT a great quilt, purple and all! I think it looks terrific with all those shades, and to have done it so fast, yay you! I know I totally get that 'amazing what you can do when you focus' thang...ha!

I would have to say purple really isn't my color either, but you did it well! I'm still hemming and hawing over a design for printed tags...good job for just jumping in! They really do make it look nice :)

I don't tend to use a lot of pink and purples, either, but the more I use them in my quilting the less I mind them. It's a start, right? I am sure this quilt is going to mean a lot to your friend's sister. You aren't the only one sending prayers her way. :)

I sure like how you pushed yourself to use this color palette. The purples and orchids together make for a pretty combination, and I think it's admirable that you could make it from your stash. I'm sewing only from my stash in 2018, so I know what a good feeling it is to "use-it-up." It's a lovely gesture on your part to make this quilt in the first place, and I hope it provides the emotional comfort she needs.

Beautiful quilt made for a wonderful purpose. Good for you getting it all done so quickly. I've had a small pull of purple fabrics since way before the year of Ultraviolet came along and after seeing this in the works, found myself pulling a few more purples. Perhaps 'll bust out my own version soon. Thanks for the inspiration. Love that last photo too.

You have discovered the "joy" of Prayer Quilts. I've been making these for the last few years and the comfort and peace as well as the warmth are tangible to both the quilter and the one receiving it. Prayer is powerful and so are quilters. Blessings to you and your family.

Oh my goodness! It turned out beautiful! really! I love this quilt, the backing, quilting, binding, lablels :), everything! Only 18 hours! wow. You have many things here to be proud of, give yourself a pat or a big ice cream cone!

About Me

As of January 2019, I am retiring from my business and I will no longer be adding new content to the blog. I plan to leave the blog up as a resource for an undetermined amount of time. Thank you so much for reading and for your support over the past 12 years!